Prices for seaborne iron ore concentrate and pellets fell in the week ended Friday September 17 amid an overall weakness in demand for steelmaking raw materials.
Fastmarkets iron ore indices
Pellet premium over 65% Fe fines, cfr China: $33.70 per tonne, up $0.40 per tonne
66% Fe concentrate, cfr Qingdao: $135.54 per tonne, down $15.71 per tonne
65% Fe blast furnace pellet, cfr Qingdao: $173.03 per tonne, down $14.88 per tonne
Key drivers
Steel production cuts and restrictions on energy consumption in several provinces in China are keeping the high-grade segment of the iron ore market largely depressed, resulting in limited offers and transactions, a trading source in Shanghai said.
A second trading source in Shanghai said that the inspection teams focusing on decarbonization had been sent out in southern China, and that such inspections were anticipated in other regions in the near term. These have added to the depressed market sentiment in the high-grade iron ore segment.
In addition, mills in Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces are required to cut...